Nothing But Politics

[Rick Faurot]

Three Iraqi National Guards Killed in New Attacks
Mon Sep 27, 2004 07:59 AM ET

By Ibon Villelabeitia
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A car bomb killed three Iraqi National Guards in Mosul and rebels mortared a police academy in Baghdad on Monday, underscoring a warning by Secretary of State Colin Powell that Iraq's insurgency was worsening.

In fresh attacks against Iraq's beleaguered security forces aimed at destabilizing the U.S.-backed government, insurgents detonated the bomb near a National Guard patrol in Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad.

The blast also wounded five National Guards and three civilians, and punched a crater in the street.

Earlier, insurgents fired five mortar bombs near a police academy in eastern Baghdad, but there were no reports of any casualties or damage, the Interior Ministry said.

The attacks came the day after Powell's warning, which linked the growing militancy to elections scheduled in Iraq for January.

"We are fighting an intense insurgency," he said on ABC's "This Week" program. "Yes it's getting worse, and the reason it's getting worse is that they are determined to disrupt the election.